Worcester kicked off a new season of European rugby with a surprise defeat 22-17 at home to Montpellier. The French side lie 13th in the Top 14 but they belied that lowly league position with victory at Sixways in the Amlin Challenge Cup.

Having reached the semi-finals of Europe's second-tier competition last season and finished as runners-up the year before that, Mike Ruddock's men had openly talked of their desire to go one step further this time around.

But they now face an uphill struggle to qualify from Pool Two after a Montpellier side missing the France internationals François Trinh-Duc and Fulgence Ouedraogo inflicted the Warriors' first home defeat of the season.

Four first-half Todeschini penalties and one from the full-back Jacques Schutte gave Montpellier a 15-10 half-time lead, with Sanderson's 40th-minute converted try sparing Worcester a greater deficit.

The key blow was struck eight minutes after the interval when Joe Carlisle's floated pass was picked off by the Montpellier centre Florian Nicot on halfway. Carlisle had been on the pitch for less than two minutes when he made the mistake.

Nicot raced home unopposed and a successful conversion enabled Montpellier to open up a 22-10 lead with little more than half an hour remaining.

Worcester did hit back four minutes later with a second try, from Wood, and their second from a powerful driving maul, too, but it was not enough to prevent a disappointing start to their European adventure.